


The One

by mcgarrygirl78



Series: These Women [5]
Category: Law & Order: SVU
Genre: Drama, Friendship, Gen, Humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-02
Updated: 2015-11-02
Packaged: 2018-04-29 13:30:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,764
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5129441
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mcgarrygirl78/pseuds/mcgarrygirl78
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“I don’t know if I believe in soul mates and all of that but if you meet the one…does fate just work it out.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	The One

**Author's Note:**

> Much thanks to everyone who read this series, enjoyed it, commented, etc. I had an interesting time writing it and exploring another side of these characters. I want to thank barsonaddict for reminding me that the end didn’t mean it all had to be wrapped up in a pretty bow. Sometimes just making a new beginning is enough.

“Hey.” Liv opened the door, smiling at Rafael standing on the other side. “What?”

“Nothing.” He shook his head. “Hi there.”

“C'mon in.”

She was dressed for an evening at home and he couldn’t help but stare as she walked ahead of him. In gray yoga pants, an oversized sweater, and slipper socks, no one should’ve looked as beautiful as she looked. Her hair was pulled back in a simple ponytail and her face virtually free of makeup. Rafael needed to say something. He needed to say something as long as it wasn’t the wrong thing. First, he took off his coat and left his damp umbrella resting against the closet door.

“So I thought the strip steaks would be good.” He said, grabbing the bags. “I know you said you had brown rice here to I got strip steaks and some peppers. I wasn’t sure if you wanted dessert.” He was following her into the small kitchen. “They had the most adorable single serving key lime pie so I picked up two plus some whipped cream because you can't really have pie without whipped cream, and…”

“Slow down, Counselor.” Liv laughed. “I'm running to keep up.”

“Sorry about that.” Rafael smiled as he put the two shopping bags on the counter. “I also got a bottle of Cabernet for you and some scotch for me.”

“It sounds like dinner is going to be delicious. I'm sorry I wasn’t in the mood to go out tonight.”

“No, its fine. It’s a bit miserable and rainy out and I know that you don’t like giving up evenings with Noah if you don’t have to. Where is Noah? It’s a bit early for bed, isn't it?”

“He's in his playpen.” Olivia replied.

“I'm just going to go and say hello.”

He went into the living room and sure enough there was Noah. He was sitting in his playpen wearing Spiderman pajamas. When he wasn’t making the two toys he played with collide into each other, he was biting on them.

“Hey there Noah.” Rafael smiled. He made no attempt to pick him up or to touch him. Children made him nervous, small children even more so. He hated to hear them cry, always assumed he was doing something to hurt them or make them uncomfortable. 

Kids that age, Noah was just over a year old, couldn’t speak. So distance was probably safer for all parties involved. Rafael crouched down and put his hand in the playpen. “High five, buddy.”

Noah just looked at him. Then he slapped Rafael’s hand with his toy robot. Luckily it was soft as the infant had a pretty good swing. Rafael gently caressed his hair and then left him to his play. He stood up, taking off his jacket, vest, and tie. Not wanting to get any food on them, Rafael lay them across the top of the loveseat.

“He looks healthy.” He said, rejoining Liv in the kitchen.

“I don’t get that compliment often.” She laughed. “I get adorable, sweet, mischievous, but rarely healthy.”

“I know he's had some illnesses set him back. It looks like he's past them.”

“For now, knock on wood.” Liv knocked on a cabinet door. “Cold and flu season is coming and I am not looking forward to it. His pediatrician thought it was a good idea to push some of his immunizations back because of the respiratory issues. So that means no daycare; I can't send him without immunizations.”

“Those places are walking germ factories.” Rafael shuddered just thinking about it. “Is Lucy going to be able to stay on and take care of him from home?”

“Yes.” Liv nodded. “So, how do you want to do this?”

“Do what?”

“Dinner?”

“Oh. Well, I want you to relax and I’ll handle it.” Rafael replied.

“I thought we were going to do it together.”

“Liv, your kitchen is the size of a postage stamp. I don’t think anyone can do anything together in here.”

“Hey,” she laughed and slapped his shoulder. “That’s not nice.”

“It’s a very lovely kitchen.” He smiled. “I'm sure I won't have any trouble finding everything I need to make a terrific meal.”

“You should see your face. It’s yelling at me to get out of your way. It’s all around the eyes, Barba.”

“I have no idea what you're talking about.”

“Alright,” she put up her hands. “I'm going. Its story time anyway.”

Liv went into the living room as Rafael began to tinker around in her kitchen. She picked Noah up from his playpen and they walked over to the bookcase together.

“Which one tonight, my love? Do you want to read about the happy elephant? We can read about Little Critter going to the zoo? I know,” Liv picked up a book. “How about some Dr. Seuss? I don’t think we’ve read this one yet.”

Rafael was preparing food, seasoning and cutting, and listened to Liv read to Noah. He could hear Noah make happy sounds and Liv laugh. Stopping what he was doing for just a moment, he took it all in. He was in the kitchen cooking while she read bedtime stories to her son just a few feet away. This wasn’t something Rafael had ever done before. 

Liv had a child and that didn’t really scare him. Noah scared him a little bit, he didn’t want to do something wrong and upset him or get peed on or all the weird things that little kids could do to adults. But her having a baby didn’t scare him. There was no ex-husband so that helped. And Noah was still so young, Rafael didn’t have to impress him or be compared to someone else that he'd known longer and better. 

He knew that Nick Amaro spent a lot of time with Noah. According to Liv, they got along extremely well. Nothing romantic was going on with Nick and Liv though. Noah didn’t think that Nick was his father. Nick wasn’t going to make the ADA’s life hell for wanting to spend time with the baby.

Rafael went back to chopping, he didn’t want to think about that anymore. The breakup with Sam was actually still bothering him. It had only been three weeks and he was still going through all the things he could’ve done differently in his mind. There was no other way for it to end though. She wasn’t the one; he wasn’t the one for her either.

“Ooh Noah, no, no, no. Crap. That’s going to require some tape.”

“Is everything alright?” Rafael asked, coming out of his own thoughts. He put some olive oil in her wok, adding the steak and peppers as it quickly got hot.

“He just tore _The Sneetches_. These books don’t have the cardboard infant pages, they're just paper. It’s OK, Mommy will fix it just like new.”

“OK. Do you have any soy sauce, Liv?”

“Check the fridge.” She closed the book and put it on the coffee table. “I'm going to get Mr. Sleepyhead to bed. Say goodnight to Rafael, Noah.”

Liv made him wave and Rafael waved back, wearing a smile. This was her life now, it was a fascinating thing for him to witness. Motherhood had changed certain aspects of Olivia but honestly it only made him love her more. Seeing her gentleness with Noah, her caring and deep love was wonderful. 

It didn’t make her any less of a hard cop, a good friend, or a fierce advocate. It was just one more side to add to an already amazing woman. Did he tell her enough how amazing she was? Did he tell her at all?

“That smells so good.” Olivia came out of the nursery, leaving the door half open. She only used the baby monitor when she was asleep or in the shower. Noah slept mostly through the night now but on quiet evenings at home she would be able to hear any little peep without extra electronics. “My stomach is doing somersaults.”

“Did you have lunch this afternoon?” Rafael asked. He put the bag of brown rice in the pot of boiling water. He didn’t know what level of cooking Liv was capable of and minute rice in a bag was no indicator. He had the same thing at home, much to his mother’s chagrin.

“Most of a salad.” She replied. “Fin and I were going over ATM surveillance looking for the East Side Groper.”

“He's the one who robs and gropes women coming off the trains.”

“Yeah. There was activity on at least three of the victims’ cards. He doesn’t have ATM numbers for everyone so we pulled tapes from the area figuring he'd stay in his comfort zone.”

“Any luck?” Rafael asked. He turned down the fire on the wok just a little.

“No.” she shook her head. “I'm waiting for a woman to tase the hell out of this guy. That’s probably how we’re going to get him.”

“I just hope he doesn’t escalate.”

“Don’t even.” Liv held up her hand. “Tell me how you're doing.”

“I'm good.” He put on a smile.

“Tell me how you're really doing.”

She walked into the kitchen to pour herself a glass of wine. Rafael was right, two people moving around in there was a bit much. There was lot of brushing against each other and whispered excuse mes. She decided to hang out by the sink with her glass for a little while.

“Alex won't take a plea and he of course wants to play this out in the court of public opinion. My entire community hates me; my mother is giving me al aojo.”

“I'm sure she isn't.” Olivia shook her head.

“You do not know my mother. Anyway, tonight I'm good. I'm not going to think about work. I'm going to cook a meal and spend time with a good friend. All of that will be waiting for me in the morning.”

“And Sam?”

“She broke up with me.” Rafael said.

“I know, we had brunch just a couple days after it happened.”

“Is she alright?”

“Don’t you know?”

“She's not exactly taking my calls, Liv. I didn’t want it to happen like it happened. I didn’t want to hurt her because she's a great person. Ending a relationship is never easy.”

“She thought you’d been gone from it for some time.” Liv said.

“And so it begins.” He mumbled.

“What?”

“Are you going to take sides?” Rafael turned and looked at her. “Are you going to believe her over me?”

“You haven’t told me anything.” Liv said. “And I'm not believing anyone. I'm not getting involved in that way.”

“Then why are we talking about it?”

“I want to make sure you're OK. I remember how I felt after it ended with Brian. I knew it was the right thing; we made the right decision. That doesn’t mean you don’t go through the grieving process or have your regrets. You don’t go to bed, wake up the next morning, and just go on. At least most people don’t. It takes time and sometimes it really hurts.”

“Still? For you?”

“No.” she shook her head. “My life has changed so much since we split. Could you imagine if Judge Linden asked me to foster Noah and I would’ve been with Brian. None of that would’ve worked out. We ended it when we were supposed to…probably should’ve been earlier. Hindsight is 20/20 though and I'm not going to pretend it isn't.”

“I didn’t love Sam. We had only been dating nine months so we didn’t have to be madly in love but I think you should feel something. I'm not saying I didn’t, it just…” Rafael sighed. “It wasn’t love. People create sparks when they're together and feel those feelings. I liked dating but once it became a relationship I think things fell apart. That wasn’t her fault.”

“Relationships take a lot of work. It’s like having a second job. The job can be fulfilling and pleasant and downright amazing, but there are also nights where you can cry yourself to sleep in frustration. Having to take on someone else’s feelings and emotions can be overwhelming.”

“You do it every day.” Rafael looked in at least two cabinets before he found a large bowl. He put the steak and peppers in it. The rice was still boiling on the stove top.

“Exactly. So it’s not easy to come home at night and jump right back in. I think on paper I'm an ideal catch but so many things get lost in translation in the real world.”

“Do you think it’s easier with the right person?” Rafael asked. “I don’t know if I believe in soul mates and all of that but if you meet the one…does fate just work it out.”

“I don’t think so. I think that the compromises you make could be easier. The little nagging things that break up some couples could slide off your back if the joy of being with that person outweighs them. I don't know, I'm the last person on earth you should ever get dating advice from.”

“Do you think you're going to get back out there?”

“I'm going to relax for a while and focus on Noah.” Liv replied. “Being a single mom makes it a lot tougher to sell yourself, so to speak. Plus Noah is just a baby and not a lot of men want to take on that kind of responsibility when they're my age or a little older. Well, concessions are made if their wives look like supermodels.”

“Yeah, concessions like nannies.” Rafael said.

“Pretty much.” Liv laughed. “I just wanted to make sure you were OK. I get why you probably didn’t want to talk about it with me, and that’s fine, but if you need someone then I want you to know that someone can be me.”

“St. Olivia.” He said.

“Yeah,” she smirked. “Something like that. I'm just going to reach over and grab a piece of this steak. It smells glorious. What did you do to it?”

“Seasoned it well, to start. You could stand to have more seasonings in your cupboards. The peppers add their own flavor and I added some soy sauce for an extra kick. How is it?”

“It’s delicious.” Liv reached for another piece but the ADA gently slapped her hand away. “Oh c'mon.”

“The rice is almost done. It’s going to taste better altogether, I promise.”

“We should’ve done dinner at home a long time ago. This is great.”

“Home.” Rafael said it under his breath, didn’t want Liv to hear him. 

This was nice actually. Cooking was a great way to come down from a stressful day. It was always nice to share that with someone you were comfortable with. In Rafael’s culture, food was love. It was family and comfort. 

They used food to celebrate, mourn, relax, and even cure. Growing up, Rafael’s maternal grandmother was always cooking something for someone. Women going through divorces, loss of children, and loss of jobs; the food never ended. Her home was a haven for so many women in their South Bronx neighborhood of all ages. The men had their dominoes, chess, and cigars outside the bodegas on clear days…the women had abuelita’s house.

“Do you want to use the good plates tonight?” he asked. 

He was pulling the bag of rice from boiling water with a fork, gently carrying it over to the sink where Olivia was standing. He held it over the drain and let the water slowly drip out. Liv put her wineglass on the counter, walking over to the cabinet and taking out two big plates. Rafael sliced the bag of rice open and did his best to give them even portions. Then he heaped a generous amount of steak and peppers onto the plates as well.

“I am really excited to eat this. I think it’s just what I needed.” Liv said. She couldn’t stop smiling. Why had she never let him cook for her before? He was clearly good at it.

“I’ll take the plates into the living room. You grab napkins and forks.”

“And drinks.”

“Oh yes, definitely drinks. Pour generously, Sergeant Benson. A hearty meal is always better with a hearty spirit, both inside your body and inside your glass. That was one of my abuelo’s life quotes. Like so many other things, he was not wrong.”

***

“Wow.” Liv put her hand over her stomach and leaned back on the loveseat. “Oh wow, yes, that was just what I needed.”

“You're exaggerating.” Rafael couldn’t help but smile.

“It was delicious. I feel cheated…I've should’ve had you cook for me before, Counselor. Now that I know your secret I may have to use it to my advantage.”

“I'm not that good.”

“I beg to differ. This was a wonderful dinner. Stop shooing away the compliments and accept them.”

“Fine, I accept them. Thank you.”

“You're welcome.” Olivia leaned and kissed his cheek.

“What was that for?” Rafael asked. He put his hand on his cheek as he shifted slightly in his seat. His first instinct was to kiss her back, which probably wasn’t a good idea. She was happy and he didn’t want to ruin that by turning the moment into something it wasn’t.

“I just felt like it. It was OK, right?”

“Yeah.” He nodded. “You’ve never kissed me before.”

“Well Counselor,” Liv collected the empty plates and her wineglass. “They say a man never forgets his first time.”

Rafael laughed, moving his feet so she could get by him and into the kitchen. Dinner had been nice and relaxed. They hadn’t talked much and didn’t need to. Sometimes the chatter and banter flowed perfectly between them and that was great. But being quiet together had its own kind of magic. He wished he could tell her that, tell her that being quiet with her was better than talking to almost anyone.

“We should have a toast.” She came back and sat down beside him.

“What to?” Rafael held up his glass of scotch. It was his second and he would only have one more this evening.

“For being back together again,” Liv replied. “So to speak.”

“Hear, hear. Earlier, I didn’t mean to get angry with you about the whole Sam thing. None of it is your fault and I'm not going to be a hindrance to any friendship that you two might have. I'm going to try my best to draw a line in the sand and not cross it.”

“I don’t know if Sam and I are going to continue our friendship.”

“Please don’t tell me that’s my fault.” He sighed. “I never wanted that, Liv, never.”

“I know.” She put her hand on his arm. “She's concerned that with us being close it’s kind of a package deal. Sam doesn’t want to be in our friendship and would never ask me to alter a relationship with someone I've been with two years for someone I just met. She also hinted that you and I could be a little more than friends.”

“What do you mean?”

“Sam thinks that I may have feelings for you or vice-versa.” Liv said.

“Did she say that to you?” Rafael was angry. “That was completely out of line and uncalled for. I knew it, I knew that something like that was going to happen. I cannot believe…”

“Stop.” Her hand was gentle on his chest. “Take a deep breath, Counselor.”

“That’s not fair to you, Liv. Saying something like this is not fair to you. She wasn’t privy to any of the personal aspects of our friendship. That certainly wasn’t because we had anything to hide.”

“She might not have been totally off the mark.”

“What are you saying?” Rafael asked the question again as his anger slowly dissipated.

“We’re close. We’re a man and a woman, we’re close, and sometimes people just assume that means something more than it does. I care about you and while I get what she was saying, I'm not going to let anyone else’s feelings dictate how we conduct our relationship.”

“I love you, Olivia.”

“I love you too.” She smiled and hugged him.

“Can we just say that every day?” Rafael buried his face in her shoulder. “If I just say it then it won't feel like the words are going to burst out of my chest. It’s the worse feeling imaginable and a total contrast to how you make me feel.”

“Maybe every other day.” Olivia released him from the hug. “Otherwise it might go to my head.”

“I'm OK with that.” He smiled.

“You say that now Counselor. You know what, no take backs.”

“No take backs.” He shook his head.

“Do you want to have dessert?” she asked, still smiling at him. “I wasn’t sure I had the room after that wonderful dinner but I'm thinking I might.”

“Sure. We can see what TCM is playing…I know they're doing noir films all this month.”

“I thought we would just put in _North by Northwest_ and have a win all around.”

“That’s a good plan.” Rafael nodded.

“I’ll get the dessert, you get the DVD.” She said, getting up from the couch.

“I'm on it.”

Liv went into the kitchen and Rafael went to the television. It sat on a cabinet, underneath Liv kept all of her DVDs. She was really into Julia Roberts’ movies and anything directed by Whit Stillman. He didn’t have to look very hard since she had a Hitchcock boxed set. It had all of his American films except the first four, which were stacked beside it on the shelf. Rafael opened the box, scanning the titles until he found _North by Northwest_. He closed the cabinet and reached up for the remote control. 

“Do you have a remote control for the DVD player?” he asked.

“It’s universal. Just press DVD and it should work.”

Rafael nodded. He took the DVD from its case and slid it into the side of the television. Liv came back with two key lime pies and the can of whipped cream. Sitting down with her, Rafael took his pie and shook the whipped cream.

“Do you promise to respect me in the morning, Sergeant?” he asked as the opening credits to the film began. “I'm about to get down and dirty with this whipped cream.”

“As long as you share then I think we can make it work. We’re pretty good at that kind of thing.”

***


End file.
